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Liveaboard Diving in Elphinstone
What to expect on an Elphinstone Reef Liveaboard
Liveaboards to Elphinstone Reef take divers to one of the best loved dive sites in the Red Sea. Around 30 km/19 miles North of Marsa Alam the reef is named after the British Admiral, George Elphinstone due to his time spent in Egypt in the time of Napoleon. It lies just under the surface with only a few small waves to indicate it is even there. From the surface it looks like a long, yellow is oblong in shape under the surface, with a shallow reef and then deep drop-offs to the sides.
Elphinstone is a very popular site for liveaboards running dive safaris in the Red Sea. There will normally be quite a few dive boats here during the day although not too many as this site is really only for advanced divers. Choosing an Egypt Liveaboard to visit Elphinstone will allow you to get the first dives of the day in before anyone else arrives.
The site offers crystal clear waters, coral and gorgonia just meters under the surface as well as a host of beautiful tropical fish. As for the bigger aquatic life, down on the plateaus at either end of the reef you can encounter oceanic whitetips and hammerheads in the winter months. Mantas and the fierce tiger sharks are more common in the warmer season. Whatever the season though, Elphinstone is teeming with life and makes a fantastic dive.
Daily Schedule (example)
Morning - To make the most of the peaceful early mornings the first dive will be early around 6 am. The dive briefing will be before breakfast but you should be able to grab a quick coffee and snack while the guide fills you in on the reef. The dives will be from a small tender boat which will drop the divers according to the current direction.
Afternoon - After lunch there will normally be another two shallower dives. Divers should be careful with their profile since they can be doing five dives a day which leads us onto the night dive! In many of the best dive sites in Egypt there is no night diving but at Elphinstone it is allowed. Liveaboards can offer sunset dives on the walls and reef. This is only for those who feel comfortable though the depth and currents are not for inexperienced divers.
Elphinstone Underwater
The reef consists of two plateaus at the North and South and one Eastern and one Western wall each good for seeing different life. The Northern plateau drops down like a set of steps only a hundred meters wide. They begin at 5 meters/16 ft. and sloping down to 20 meters/65 ft before a sharp fall to 40. This is a great place to see smaller pelagics such as giant trevally and reef sharks.
The South Plateau starts around 25 meters/80 ft and slopes gently to 40 meters/130 ft before dropping off at around 45 meters/150 ft. This is the place to see oceanic whitetips which are passing by with their Pilot fish followers. These beautiful sharks come surprisingly close making this a unique opportunity for stunning photographs and close encounters. For technical divers with the right training around 60 meters there is a tunnel that passes between the two walls called the Elphinstone Arch. The arch is home to an intriguing old fable that a sarcophagus shaped outcrop of coral contains the remains of an Egyptian pharaoh!
The two walls on either side start at 1 meter and go down into the abyss with hundreds of little ledges and hiding places for all kind of creatures. Beautiful corals, trigger fish, napoleon wrasse and great barracuda are just some of the inhabitants here. Elphinstone seems to have it all between the four sides and if luck is on your side there have been sightings of hammerheads and whale sharks there too.
Top Tips for Elphinstone Reef
- The current here is fairly regular North to South but that isn't guaranteed and it is strong around 2 knots or more so be prepared.
- The site is very popular and later in the day it can get a little busier, a liveaboard is best as you will get in the water before anyone else.
- Set a depth warning on your computer. No one knows how deep the waters around Elphinstone go and the clear water makes it easy to go deeper than you intended.
Getting to Elphinstone
Egypt Liveaboards that go to Elphinstone normally depart from either Port Ghalib near Marsa Alam or Hurghada. Both of these have international airports with flights from most major European airports and connecting flights from further afield. Transfer between the two is normally around four hours and will be an additional charge.
Itineraries vary depending on the departure and length of sailing but there are certain sites the majority visit. If your trip includes Elphinstone and other sites most likely you will also be heading to Daedalus and the Brothers as well. In some cases, you will transit to Elphinstone overnight and arrive early morning at the site. Alternatively, there are day boat trips to Elphinstone leaving from Marsa Alam.
Elphinstone Diving Reviews
- 9.1 Superb
- 125 Verified Reviews
great visibility, small Longimanus
Diving Elphinstone in December on the Blue
Very nice reef with resident turtle and a couple of Longimanus
Diving Elphinstone in October on the Okeanos Xplorer
Oceanic white tips and dolphins!
Diving Elphinstone in August on the JP Marine
Inkl Delphine, sehr schönes Riff leidet zu viele Boote
Diving Elphinstone in October on the Samira Discovery
Disappointing nothing special.
Diving Elphinstone in September on the Golden Dolphin
Elphinstone itself is very impressiv, so nice to dive there anyway. We didn't see any sharks, but heard that at the moment also many others didn't see them, so they might just be somewehere else ;)
Diving Elphinstone in August on the Sea Legend
Poor visibility with many people in the water.
Diving Elphinstone in March on the Blue
Better in summer, sharks season
Diving Elphinstone in February on the Blue Horizon
Very good diving, very diverse marine life
Diving Elphinstone in December on the Grand Sea Serpent
Very nice, great variety of life; corals and fish.
Diving Elphinstone in December on the Blue Seas
Was OK. Unfortunately we just did one dive at Elphinstone
Diving Elphinstone in November on the Blue Pearl
good to see longimanus... nice sites for corals too
Diving Elphinstone in October on the Amelia Discovery
Lots of white tip sharks that circle the boat.
Diving Elphinstone in October on the Sunlight
Tres belle plongée avec beaucoup de longimanus qui aiment trainer autour des bateaux et de beaux récifs tres vivants
Diving Elphinstone in October on the Al Farouk II
Tunas, barracudas, Grouper, sharks. Great diving.
Diving Elphinstone in August on the JP Marine
Nice we had very close encounter with longimanus
Diving Elphinstone in August on the JP Marine
Reef , shark , and Dolphins 😘😘😍
Diving Elphinstone in August on the JP Marine
Water and reef was great, huge Napoleons
Diving Elphinstone in August on the JP Marine
Amazing to see the longimanus oceanic shark
Diving Elphinstone in August on the Red Sea Blue Force 3
Very nice reef with many corals
Diving Elphinstone in July on the Blue Seas
easy diving. beautiful coral.
Diving Elphinstone in July on the MY Odyssey Liveaboard
Government regulation restricted us from mooring overnight, but we did have the opportunity to follow a few schools of Hammerheads!
Diving Elphinstone in July on the Amelia Discovery
Gorgeous reef, turtles, rays, I mean the ONLY complaint about these absolutely incredible dive sites is macro is not as prevalent but when there are manta rays swimming in your face you learn to deal lol!
Diving Elphinstone in July on the JP Marine
To see and hope for next dive to have the chance to meet the longimanus
Diving Elphinstone in July on the Golden Dolphin
Excelent soft coral and reef fish.A hammerhead and grey reef in the blue.
Diving Elphinstone in July on the Seawolf Felo
Incredible shark experience and beautiful corals
Diving Elphinstone in July on the Blue
Excellent site with Oceanic white tip an unexpected bonus
Diving Elphinstone in July on the Blue
Lots (LOTS) of sharks, turtle. Also very clean and calm.
Diving Elphinstone in June on the Amelia Discovery
good coral life. missing other pelagics. out of season for oceanic:(
Diving Elphinstone in June on the Emperor Asmaa
Great coral reef, but not much fish
Diving Elphinstone in June on the Samira Discovery
Beautiful reef with lot of lives.
Diving Elphinstone in May on the Seawolf Felo
Beautiful. Some strong currents. Lots of turtles and moray eels
Diving Elphinstone in May on the Tillis
OK, chance to see Grey Reef Shark.
Diving Elphinstone in May on the JP Marine
Mediocre and very crowded. We dived for 2 days. Better of spending another day at brothers
Diving Elphinstone in May on the Longimanus
Napoleon fish, sting ray, giant trevally, barracuda
Diving Elphinstone in May on the Golden Dolphin III
It was the deepest dive among this trip. Full of marine life and beautiful coral drop down.
Diving Elphinstone in April on the Blue Horizon
wonderful plateau, unpredictable currents but also smooth leisure dives with beautiful corals and small and big fish. Slightly more crowded with divers than the other places
Diving Elphinstone in May on the JP Marine
Perfect as well, with colorfull corals, and richer life.
Diving Elphinstone in April on the JP Marine
Very nice corals and reef.
Diving Elphinstone in May on the Amelia Discovery
Elphinstone is quite amazing, the two plateaus are nice but also the current could be dangerous. We saw a tigershark and dolphins at the elphinstone reef.
Diving Elphinstone in April on the JP Marine
We saw no big fish, but the diving was anyway very interesting. Big and beautiful corals and interesting small fishes.
Diving Elphinstone in February on the Blue Seas
Plenty of current with the highlight watching a turtle feeding
Diving Elphinstone in January on the Blue
One of my favorite dive spot
Diving Elphinstone in March on the JP Marine
I would recommend, but if you want sharks, end of February is not the right time of year.
Diving Elphinstone in February on the Blue Seas
Pleasant dive with pretty marine life and corals.
Diving Elphinstone in December on the Blue
Nice reef, truly enjoyed diving here.
Diving Elphinstone in December on the Blue
Awesome and it was the highlight
Diving Elphinstone in December on the Sea Serpent
Beautiful reef, steep walls, amazing soft corals.
Diving Elphinstone in November on the JP Marine
Great coral life,excellent visibility
Diving Elphinstone in August on the Blue Seas
Lovely! Visebilety of more than 60 meter!! Whaleshark and Turtles!
Diving Elphinstone in September on the JP Marine
little current, no sharks, one turtle- great for start and end the trip
Diving Elphinstone in August on the Blue Horizon
Great (Turtles, 2x white tip sharks and only two other live-aboards there at the same time as us)
Diving Elphinstone in August on the Nouran
I had dived in Elphinstone before, it's a matter of luck to see big fish there, have not been very lucky, but I loved the couple of turtles that live there on the plateau
Diving Elphinstone in August on the Blue Fin
I'm so sad because I dived here only one time.
Diving Elphinstone in August on the Blue Melody
This was the weakest dive site. It is a bit overcrowded, maybe because there is no entrance fee there and it is close to Marsa Alam so daily boats are coming.
Diving Elphinstone in August on the JP Marine
Beautiful coral and lots of small fish unfortunately nothing big and no sharks
Diving Elphinstone in August on the JP Marine
Relaxing. No sightings, but still a nice experience.
Diving Elphinstone in July on the Emperor Echo
Very depth dive site i went to 40 meters but i can found hammerhead shark.
Diving Elphinstone in June on the Tillis
Hammer heads, oceanic white tips had a great time
Diving Elphinstone in May on the JP Marine
Busy, lots of divers, strong current, but very beautiful reef
Diving Elphinstone in May on the JP Marine
Saw beatiful corals and a manta ray
Diving Elphinstone in April on the JP Marine
Deep diving, very demanding dives due to strong current along this reef ! Exceptionnal dives !
Diving Elphinstone in September on the Emperor Asmaa
Oceanic white tips and beautiful dive site.
Diving Elphinstone in July on the Sea Serpent
My first time in this site. I'm impressed and would like to return.
Diving Elphinstone in November on the MY Seawolf Felo
windy with high waves. Every dive was with the Oceanics. The crew (dive guides) had a good eye for safety!
Diving Elphinstone in September on the Sea Serpent
Super adventure with a lot of current
Diving Elphinstone in August on the Emperor Asmaa
Perfect! Oceanic white tips around the boat! Unforgettable!
Diving Elphinstone in August on the Blue Melody
Great experience with sharks
Diving Elphinstone in August on the Sea Serpent
exciting (we saw the white teep reef shark)
Diving Elphinstone in July on the Emperor Superior
A bit on the boring side on the way back
Diving Elphinstone in June on the Blue Melody